A man who killed a security guard after firing shots into the air at a crowded nightclub three years ago had five years taken off his 20 year prison sentence by the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court of Appeal Thursday.
Keon Edwards, a native of St. Vincent, pleaded guilty to manslaughter after a bullet from his gun killed Monroe Thomas Jr. at Club Diplomat in Long Bush on March 1, 2009.
During his arraignment, Mr. Edwards pleaded not guilty to murder and prosecutors dropped that charge.
At the time of the shooting, Mr. Thomas was acting as a “peacemaker” to mediate a confrontation between Mr. Edwards and other security guards at the club, Senior Crown Counsel Christilyn Benjamin said last April.
Mr. Edwards was angry that he had been denied entry to the club, the prosecutor added. After forcing his way inside he fired four gunshots, one of which struck Mr. Thomas in the neck, a wound she said that bled “like a pipe had been turned on” until he died. Mr. Thomas was 29 at the time, according to court records. After the shooting, Mr. Edwards fled to St. Thomas where he was apprehended seven months later by United States authorities.
See the Oct. 11, 2012 edition for full coverage.